ai4bharat/Pralekha huggingface dataset:
Ministry of Defence
INDIAN NAVY PARTICIPATES AT THE GOA CARNIVAL
PIB GOA
The Indian Navy participated at the Goa Carnival at Vasco-da-Gama on 28 February 2022, displaying a float , presenting a short skit and putting up a scintillating band performance.
The tableau depicted the amphibious transport dock ship, INS Jalashwa, taking part in 'Operation Samudra Setu' that was conducted by the Navy to bring relief, succour and medical aid to numerous Indians residing in India and other nations in the region when COVID-19 was declared a serious global pandemic. The Indian Navy's contribution in supporting the Government of India's regional outreach - in the form of repatriating Indian citizens, transporting medical oxygen and delivering 170 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines to friendly nations under the 'Vaccine Maitri' initiative - was the highlight of the display. The award of President's Colour to Naval Aviation was also portrayed.
The float also reflected the theme of Navy Week 2021 : 'Indian Navy - Combat Ready, Credible and Cohesive'.
Ministry of Information & Broadcasting
Goa Agriculture Minister Ravi Naik inaugurates Millet Utsav
Panaji | 4th October 2023
In an effort to champion the cause of nutrition, sustainable agriculture, and community well-being, a Millet Utsav was organized by the Goa Directorate of Agriculture today at Durbar Hall, Raj Bhavan, Goa. The Agriculture Minister of Goa, Shri Ravi S. Naik, inaugurated the festival, which aimed to raise awareness about millet production and consumption, emphasizing their exceptional nutritional advantages and versatile use in our daily diets. The festival also featured an exhibition organized by the Central Bureau of Communication  Goa.
The CBC Exhibition at the Millet Utsav showcases the transformative potential of millets and commemorates the significance of the International Year of Millets. It featured an array of facts and figures highlighting the vital role that millets can play in our lives. Visitors were immersed in the nutritional benefits and diverse applications of millets. A selfie booth celebrating the International Year of Millets and its profound impact on farmers' livelihoods was also a notable feature.
The festival encompassed a series of enlightening talks and practical demonstrations on various aspects of millet cultivation, their nutritive value, quality parameters, licensing requisites for millet-based foods, and the crafting of value-added products using millets. Adding culinary excitement, a millet recipe competition was also organized, which captivated participants who showcased their culinary prowess and creativity with millet-based dishes.
Complementing the knowledge-sharing sessions, attendees had the opportunity to relish millet-based snacks and food items, all skillfully prepared by Self Help Groups and innovative Millet startups. The festival also featured captivating Millet-based skits and group songs echoing the theme: "Grow Millets, Eat Millets, Stay Healthy."
The Millet Utsav witnessed participation from various state departments including Art & Culture, Education, Higher Education, Sports, Food & Drugs Administration, District Rural Development Agency, Tourism, Women & Child Development, Health, and Goa College of Agriculture, among others. Their involvement underscores the collaborative commitment to promoting millets for the betterment of communities and the environment.
The Millet Utsav is a testament to Goa's dedication to fostering a healthier and more sustainable future, where millets take center stage in the journey towards enhanced nutrition and ecological resilience. Also present at the inaugural ceremony were Ms. Anna Roy, Senior Advisor, NITI Aayog and Shri. Nevil Alphonso, Director, Directorate of Agriculture, Government of Goa. The month of October is set to witness numerous such events, celebrating and generating awareness about millets.
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Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry & Dairying
India and Singapore organise East Asia Summit workshop on Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated Fishing
Australia, Cambodia, China, Indonesia, New Zealand, Republic of Korea attend the event
India calls for combating illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing by working with coastal fishing communities
Participants share national success stories and measures taken to combat IUU fishing
Department of Fisheries, Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, Government of India and the Government of Singapore organized a virtual East Asia Summit  Workshop on Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated  Fishing yesterday co-chaired by India and Singapore Food Agency . Shri Jatindra Nath Swain, Secretary, Department of Fisheries , Government of India gave key note address . The workshop was attended by 8 EAS member countries, and 4 knowledge partners, officials of Department of Fisheries, Government of India , Fisheries officials of different States/UTs and other invitees.
In his inaugural address, Shri Swain highlighted the urgent call for combating illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing. Mr. Swain shared some of India’s efforts and initiatives to combat IUU fishing especially through working with coastal fishing communities.
The Workshop began with the opening session led by India and chaired by Joint Secretary, Department of Fisheries, Goverment of India, Dr. J Balaji. During the welcome address Dr. J Balaji introduced the theme of the workshop and welcomed all the esteemed delegates, panelists and participants in the Workshop from the countries of Australia, Cambodia, China, Indonesia, New Zealand, Republic of Korea along with India and Singapore.In his opening remarks to the EAS IUU Workshop, the CEO of the Singapore Food Agency highlighted the importance of combating IUU fishing which has negatively impacted the livelihood and food security of the coastal fishing communities.
The Technical Session 1 was focused on regional collaborations in combating IUU fishing and was Chaired by Singapore Food Agency. The knowledge-partners, namely, the Bay of Bengal Programme Inter-Governmental Organization , the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization , the Southeast Asian Fisheries Development Center  and the UN Food and Agriculture Organization  shared the regional efforts and the groundbreaking and continuous efforts being taken to combat IUU fishing. During the Technical Session 2, representative from each participating country shared their national success stories, experience gained and measures being taken up by the respective country to curb IUU fishing.
After sessions and discussions, the webinar concluded with closing remarks by Ms. Geetika Srivastava, Joint Secretary, Ministry of External Affairs, GoI.
Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change
Pollution in National Capital Region
The major factors responsible for air pollution in National Capital Region  include high level of anthropogenic activities in the high-density populated areas in NCR, arising from various sectors viz. vehicular pollution, industrial pollution, roads and open areas dust, dust from construction and demolition project activities, biomass burning, agricultural stubble burning, municipal solid waste burning, fires in sanitary landfills and air pollution from dispersed sources, bursting of fire crackers etc.
The details of FIRs lodged and environment compensation imposed/collected by the Governments of Haryana and Punjab against paddy straw burning incidences is annexed as Annexure-I.
To control stubble burning instances, Government explored the possibilities of policy interventions for environmentally sound management of crop residue/parali including its use as supplementary fuel, aimed at additional source of income to farmers, better air quality, reduced GHG emissions and employment opportunities. For effective prevention and control of Stubble Burning, a framework and action plans on in-situ and ex-situ crop residue management, prohibition of stubble / crop residue burning, effective monitoring / enforcement, schemes to reduce the generation of paddy straw, IEC activities for the plan of action etc.
For control of pollution from roads, eleven  ‘dust control and management cells’ have been set up so far in Delhi. These cells take actions viz. optimum utilization of road sweeping machines, scientific disposal of dust collected, sprinkling of water and dust suppressants on roads / right of ways, augmentation of sweeping and sprinkling machines, proper maintenance of roads and also keep road pothole free, laying of roads to fully support mechanised sweeping, non-paved road sides to be paved or converted into green, greening of central verges / plantation of trees, cemented roads in industrial areas, identification of hot spots and implement specific road dust control measures etc.
ANNEXURE-I
The details of FIRs lodged and environment compensation imposed/collected by the Governments of Haryana and Punjab against paddy straw burning incidences is as follows:
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|
Government of Haryana
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|
Year
|
|
No. of Police Complaint/ FIR's Registered
|
|
Environmental Compensation collected 
|
|
2016
|
|
0
|
|
19.38 Lacs
|
|
2017
|
|
236
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|
42.17 Lacs
|
|
2018
|
|
167
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|
50.05 Lacs
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|
2019
|
|
2020
|
|
19.20 Lacs
|
|
2020 
|
|
464
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|
86.46 lacs
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|
Government of Punjab
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|
Year
|
|
No. of Police Complaint/ FIRs Registered
|
|
Environmental Compensation collected 
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|
2018
|
|
Nil
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|
19.625 lacs
|
|
2019
|
|
1737
|
|
14.80 lacs
|
|
2020
|
|
48
|
|
6.575 lacs
This information was given by Union Minister of State for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Shri Ashwini Kumar Choubey in a written reply in the Rajya Sabha.
Ministry of Defence
Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh holds bilateral talks with Kazakh Defence Minister Lt Gen Nurlan Yermekbayev;
Discuss ways to further strengthen bilateral defence cooperation
Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh held bilateral talks with Defence Minister of Republic of Kazakhstan Lieutenant General Nurlan Yermekbayev in New Delhi on April 09, 2021. During the meeting, the two Ministers exchanged views to further strengthen bilateral defence cooperation, including through training, defence exercises and capacity building. They agreed that both sides must look at the possibility of defence industrial collaboration of mutual interest.
The Defence Minister of Kazakhstan thanked Raksha Mantri for the opportunity given to the Kazakh troops for deployment as part of the Indian battalion in United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon . Both Ministers also positively assessed the annual KAZIND Exercise.
Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat, Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Karambir Singh, Defence Secretary Dr Ajay Kumar, Secretary  Shri Raj Kumar and other senior civil and military officials of Ministry of Defence were also present on the occasion.
Lieutenant General Nurlan Yermekbayev is on an official visit to India from April 7-10, 2021. He visited HQs 12 Corps at Jodhpur and the Longewala sector in Jaisalmer. The Kazakh Defence Minister is in India on the invitation of Raksha Mantri.
ABB/KA/DK/Savvy
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Cabinet
Cabinet apprised of Implementing Arrangement between India and France on Cooperation on Maritime Awareness Mission
The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has been appraised of the Implementing Arrangement  for Pre-formulation Studies of a Maritime Domain Awareness Mission signed between India and France on 10th March 2018.
The proposed joint mission will be devoted to maritime domain awareness, with the objective to provide relevant data and services to both nations. The objective is to monitor the maritime traffic and to identify the non-compliant ships at the maximum possible revisit frequency. The monitoring system would provide an end to end solution for detection, identification, monitoring of vessels in the regions of interest for India and France.
As per the IA, Indian Space Research Organization  and Centre Nationale Dètudes Spatiales , France will jointly undertake various activities during these pre-formulation studies and present the pre-formulation concept study results to the respective senior management for review within one year of its signing.
Ministry of Agriculture &
Farmers Welfare
MSP Operations during Kharif Marketing Season 2020-21
About 64.07 Lakh Paddy farmers have benefitted from KMS procurement Operations with MSP value of Rs 94202.64 Crore
A quantity of 7578832 Cotton Bales valuing Rs.22208.01 Crore procured benefitting 1481064 farmers.
In the ongoing Kharif Marketing Season  2020-21, Government continues to procure Kharif 2020-21 crops at MSP from farmers as per existing MSP Schemes.
Paddy procurement for Kharif 2020-21 is continuing smoothly in the procuring States & UTs of Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Telangana, Uttarakhand, Tamil Nadu, Chandigarh, Jammu & Kashmir, Kerala, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Bihar, Jharkhand, Assam and West Bengal with purchase of over 498.95 LMTs of paddy up to 02.01.2021.This is an increase of 24.49 % against the last year corresponding purchase of 400.79 LMT. Out of the total purchase of 498.95 LMT, Punjab alone has contributed 202.77 LMT which is 40.64% of total procurement.
About 64.07 Lac farmers have already been benefitted from the ongoing KMS procurement Operations with MSP value of Rs94202.64 Crore.
Further, based on the proposal from the States, approval was accorded for procurement of 51.66 LMT of Pulse and Oilseeds of Kharif Marketing Season 2020 for the States of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Telangana, Gujarat, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Odisha, Rajasthan and Andhra Pradesh under Price Support Scheme . Further, sanction for procurement of 1.23 LMT of Copra  for the States of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala was also given. For other States/UTs, approval will also be accorded on receipt of proposals for procurement of Pulses, Oilseeds and Copra under PSS so that procurement of FAQ grade of these crops can be made at notified MSP for the year 2020-21 directly from the registered farmers, if the market rate goes below MSP during the notified harvesting period in the respective States/UTs by the Central Nodal Agencies through State nominated procuring agencies.
Upto 02.01.2021, the Government through its Nodal Agencies has procured261623.76MT of Moong, Urad, Groundnut Pods and Soyabean having MSP value of Rs. 1399.84 Crores benefitting 140924 farmers in Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Haryana and Rajasthan.
Similarly, 5089 MT of copra  having MSP value of Rs.52.40 crore has been procured benefitting 3961 farmers in Karnataka and Tamil Naduupto 02.01.2021 as against the last year corresponding purchase of 293.34 MT of copra. In respect of Copra and Urad, rates are ruling above MSP in most of the major producing States. The respective State/UTs Governments are making necessary arrangements for commencement of procurement from the date as decided by the respective States based on the arrivals in respect of Kharif Pulses and Oilseeds.
Procurement operations of seed cotton  under MSP are going on smoothly in the States of Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha and Karnataka. Till 02.01.2021 a quantity of 7578832 cotton bales valuing Rs.22208.01 Crore has been procured benefitting 1481064 farmers.
Ministry of Communications
Department of Posts Reaches Customers’ Door-steps in Time of Pandemic
Kolkata, April 28, 2021
When our nation is going through a pandemic situation due to Covid-19, the Department of Posts strives to render its various public services ranging from delivery of mails and parcels containing commodities like medicines and medical equipment to banking operations.
The Department of Posts in this situation has requested the valued customers to avail the facility of Aadhaar Enabled Payment System  for withdrawal of cash. Under this system, the local postman will arrive with a biometric device and cash when a customer intimates the post office in advance. Based on the customer’s Aadhaar number and the name of his or her bank and OTP received on the registered mobile number, the cash is delivered to the customer at his doorstep.
If there is a necessity to visit the Post Offices, The customers have been requested to maintain all the precautionary measures such as wearing masks and maintaining social distance while standing in queue in the post offices. The Department of Posts has also advised the customers to avoid crowds. This apart, the customers have been advised to get in touch with their post offices for booking of medical and essential items.
Ministry of Micro,Small & Medium Enterprises
International Cooperation With MSMEs
To encourage international cooperation between various countries and the MSMEs in the country, Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises is implementing International Cooperation Scheme, a Central Sector Scheme. The scheme is in operation since its inception in 1996. The Scheme facilitates Indian MSMEs for their participation in international exhibitions, trade fairs, buyer seller meet and for holding international conferences and seminars which are in the interest of MSME sectors. The purpose of this scheme is enhancing the competency of MSMEs, capturing new markets for their products, exploring & enhancing exports, exploring new technologies for increasing manufacturing capacity, generation of employment etc. As per scheme guidelines, financial assistance is provided on reimbursement basis to the State/Central Government organizations, industries/enterprises Associations and registered societies/trusts and organizations associated with promotion and development of MSME sector. The details of expenditure incurred and no. of MSMEs assisted under the scheme during last 3 years are as under:-
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Year
|
|
Expenditure

|
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No. of MSME benefited
|
|
No of events supported
|
|
2018-19
|
|
4.80
|
|
590
|
|
46
|
|
2019-20
|
|
6.90
|
|
586
|
|
52
|
|
2020-21
|
|
1.80
|
|
102
|
|
15
The total registrations under ZED Scheme: 23948 MSMEs. Out of 23,948 registrations, the following are the status of MSMEs undergone ZED model:
Site Assessment carried out: 503 MSMEs
- Bronze certified: 131 MSMEs
- Silver certified: 132 MSMEs
- Gold certified: 62 MSMEs
- Diamond certified: 04 MSMEs
- No rating: 174 MSMEs
In regard to Gap Analysis, Handholding, Consultancy, etc., component under the scheme was not initiated during FY 2016-17 & 2017-18 under the erstwhile ZED Scheme. Further, the erstwhile ZED Scheme has been renamed as “MSME Sustainable ”, and its guidelines is under approval stage.
This information was given by the Minister of State for Micro Small and Medium Enterprises, Shri Bhanu Pratap Singh Verma in a written reply to the Lok Sabha.
Prime Minister's Office
Himachal Pradesh CM calls on PM
Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh, Shri Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu called on the Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi today.
In a tweet, the Prime Minister said;
"Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh, Shri Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, called on Prime Minister @narendramodi."
Ministry of Defence
INDIAN ARMY ORGANISES SEMINAR ON MILITARY JURISPRUDENCE
The Institute of Military Law of the Indian Army organised a seminar on "Evolution & Future of Military Jurisprudence - An Indian Army Perspective" at the Manekshaw Centre, Delhi Cantonment, New Delhi on 25 February 2023. Institute of Military Law is a premier Institute, one of its kind in Asia which imparts knowledge on Military Law to uniformed personnel.
Ms Justice Hima Kohli, Hon'ble Judge Supreme Court, was the Chief Guest. The event was attended by Mr R Venkataramani, Attorney General of India, Lieutenant General BS Raju, Vice Chief of the Army Staff, Lt Gen SS Mahal, Army Commander, Army Training Command, Judge Advocate Generals  of all the three services, and Veterans of the JAG Department. The event was also attended by sitting Judges of the Hon'ble Supreme Court, Delhi High Court, and the Judicial Members of the Armed Forces Tribunal.
The seminar focused on the evolution of Military Law in India to generate lessons from erstwhile and contemporary challenges to suggest a way forward to strengthen it and align with the Global Military Jurisprudence.
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SC/RSR/VKT
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Ministry of Finance
SWAMIH Fund delivers over 22,500 homes as on 17th March 2023
As on 17th March 2023, Government of India has released an amount of Rs 2,646.57 crore to the SWAMIH Fund. This was stated by the Union Minister of State for Finance Shri Pankaj Chaudhary in a written reply to a question in Lok Sabha today.
The Minister added that as on 17th March, 2023, the SWAMIH Fund has delivered over 22,500 homes.
Giving more details, the Minister stated that SWAMIH provides funding to stressed/ stalled mid income and affordable housing projects across India, who satisfy the following criteria:-
- At least 90% of the available Floor Space Index / Floor Area Ratio  is being developed as Affordable Housing units or Mid-Income Housing units.
- Is net worth positive.
- Is a part of RERA registered projects; has incurred at least 30% of the project costs; and requires last mile funding, sufficient to complete the project.
- The capital provided by the Fund shall have a senior charge  over the portion of the project for which the funding shall be used.
- Affordable or Mid-income Housing units have been defined as any housing units that do not exceed 200 sqm RERA carpet area and are priced as following :
- Less than INR 2 crore in Mumbai Metropolitan Region;
- Less than INR 1.5 crore in National Capital Region, Chennai, Kolkata, Pune, Hyderabad, Bangalore and Ahmedabad;
- Less than INR 1 crore in the rest of India;
The Ministry of Finance carries out periodic review of the functioning of the fund and obtains regular updates on the functioning of the fund from the Investment Manager of the fund, the Minister stated.
Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers
HIL India Ltd. supplies 25 MT Malathion 95% ULV Insecticides to Iran for Locust Control Programme
HIL  Limited, a PSU under Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers and one of the leading manufacturer of insecticides in the country has supplied 25MT Malathion 95% ULV to Iran under Government-to-Government initiative for Locust Control Programme
India had recently approached Iran and Pakistan for coordinated response to counter desert locust menace in the region. Iran has expressed its willingness to the proposal and accordingly Ministry of External Affairs placed an order with HIL  Limited, to manufacture and supply 25 MT of Malathion 95% ULV to Iran. The consignment is expected to reach Iran by 16th June 2020.
As per the reports of the Food and Agriculture Organisation , the hopper stage population of locust is building up in Sistan-Baluchistan Region of Iran, which shall migrate to India in coming months leading to further crop devastation. Government of India has taken an initiative to counter the locust menace at its breeding ground itself and approached Iran for coordinated efforts.
Desert Locust after severe crop devastation in Horn of Africa, East Africa and Arabian Peninsula has entered into India in March/April 2020 and it has affected the field crop, horticulture crops and other plantation in the State of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Punjab and Uttar Pradesh. The country is experiencing worst locust invasion, which was last observed more than 25 years back.
HIL  Limited is also supplying Malathion 95% ULV to Ministry of Agriculture and Farmer’s Welfare Locust Control Programme in the country. From 2019 till date Company has supplied more than 600 MT of Malathion 95% ULV for this programme .